Apple took the curious step of not really increasing the battery life on the iPhone 5 despite the faster chipset with LTE connectivity... but it seems that the decision to wait a little while before bringing the 4G technology to the phone has allowed it to optimise the power pack.

However, it's not the stellar performance we've seen from other smartphones of late. It's not terrible but it won't be lasting beyond late evening on most days.

We don't see this as a real problem in reality, as the modern smartphone user should be ready to charge each night if they want to keep chugging along every day.

That said, during our tests we managed to run the battery down by mid afternoon through general testing fairly frequently: running turn-by-turn directions for 15 mins, watching a video, talking on the phone for 20 mins and messing about on the internet for a good hour or two.

In the more lackadaisical days, we found it was only getting to dangerous levels around 10PM - but we'll await the findings of our more scientific battery tests to see how well or poorly the phone performs in the power stakes.

4G

4G is the new trick on offer from the iPhone 5, and unlike the launch of the new iPad, 4G will actually work in Australia.

The iPhone 5 supports LTE on the 1800MHz spectrum used by both Telstra and Optus, meaning you can get superfast connectivity in LTE coverage areas right now.

Vodafone customers can also rest easy in the knowledge that its planned LTE network will run on 1800MHz as well, meaning you'll get a nice speed boost when it launches 4G next year

The speed performance of LTE is astounding. We tested the iPhone 5 on Telstra's 4G network, and consistently pulled down speeds of 20-25 Mbps and upload speeds of around 20Mbps.This outstrips even the more powerful Wi-Fi in many homes.

As a point of comparison, Telstra's 3G network (not HSPA) only managed a paltry 3-5Mbps down and 0.5Mbps up using the Speedtest app.

The catch with LTE in Australia is that the coverage is still fairly limited. The good news is that should you step out of the 4G zone, you still get DC-HSPA (or 4G-lite) providing your network is capable of this.

It's hard to believe a phone so thin could offer so many features: a larger display, a faster chip, the latest wireless technology, an 8MP iSight camera, and more. All in a beautiful aluminum body designed and made with an unprecedented level of precision. iPhone 5 measures a mere 7.6 millimeters thin and weighs just 112 grams. That's 18 percent thinner and 20 percent lighter than iPhone 4S. The only way to achieve a design like this is by relentlessly considering (and reconsidering) every single detail - including the details you don't see.